Listen to in-depth interviews twice a week from adventure sports enthusiasts around the globe. You'll hear from outfitters, guides, instructors, authors and many more who live their lives to the fullest. Not only will you enjoy shows about your favorite adventure sports, but you'll also discover activities you may decide to try as well. Come learn about amazing people and how their organizations provide incredible benefits to society.

Find Your Sport

Monday, July 31, 2017

Ep. 292: The First Woman to Ride Around the World on a Motorcycle - Elspeth Beard

In 1982, at the age of just twenty-three and halfway through her architecture studies, Elspeth Beard left her family and friends in London and set off on a 35,000-mile solo adventure around the world on her 1974 BMW R60/6. Reeling from a recent breakup and with only limited savings from her pub job, a tent, a few clothes and some tools, all packed on the back of her bike, she was determined to prove herself. She had ridden bikes since her teens and was well traveled. But nothing could prepare her for what lay ahead. When she returned to London nearly two and a half years later she was stones lighter and decades wiser. She'd ridden through unforgiving landscapes and countries ravaged by war, witnessed civil uprisings that forced her to fake documents, and fended off sexual attacks, biker gangs and corrupt police convinced she was trafficking drugs. She'd survived life-threatening illnesses, personal loss and brutal accidents that had left permanent scars and a black hole in her memory. And she'd fallen in love with two very different men. In an age before email, the internet, mobile phones, sat-navs and, in some parts of the world, readily available and reliable maps, Elspeth achieved something that would still seem remarkable today. Told with honesty and wit, this is the extraordinary and moving story of a unique and life-changing adventure.

The Adventure Sports podcast is sponsored by Health IQ, an insurance company that helps health conscious people get special rates on term life insurance. Go to healthiq.com/adventureto support the show and learn more.